How do you categorize a year as volatile as 2012? For starters, it was finally a Year of Progress as the industry mulled the issues and moved forward. To make my case, I have picked the top FTF News story trends from the year that was. We have also listed the top stories based upon… Read More >>
OTC Overhauls Hit Home
Shortly after CFTC Commissioner Bart Chilton declared at the 7th Annual OTC Derivatives Operations & Processing Conference last week that the Dodd-Frank reforms will deliver transparency, it became clear during a subsequent discussion that if firms haven’t done so, they need to get their IT architectures in place now to stay on top of the… Read More >>
And, now, the Lame-Duck Session
As the euphoria from Tuesday fades, the President, Congress, regulators and lobbyists face a staggering agenda for the 2012 lame-duck session, which starts next week and runs to the end of the year. Many of the agenda items to be considered during what is usually a lackluster session will have a major impact upon financial… Read More >>
Analysis: The Presidential Race and Dodd-Frank
The winner of the U.S. Presidential race between incumbent Democrat Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney will oversee either the next chapter for Dodd-Frank or its demise. For financial services firm, the choice voters make today will help them move out of an IT project limbo and toward more regulatory compliance or initiatives for… Read More >>
Q&A: CFTC
CFTC commissioner Bart Chilton says that no matter who wins the U.S. presidency on Tuesday, Nov. 6, the momentum for over-the-counter (OTC) execution, clearing and transparency reforms for the derivatives market is practically unstoppable. He adds that there would be little political support to return to the unregulated OTC world that triggered the Great Recession.GOP… Read More >>
Taking a Second Look at the DiNapoli Report
Much of the report released this week about the securities industry in New York City did not get covered beyond the employment or profit data. I will try to shed some light on a few of the report’s rather intriguing observations about Dodd-Frank, the Volcker Rule and bonuses. The good news is that the analysis… Read More >>
Romney and Dodd-Frank
Conventional wisdom says Dodd-Frank will survive no matter who is elected president in November. But conventional wisdom also said that President Barack Obama would handily win last night’s first presidential debate. Yet an energized Mitt Romney, the GOP challenger, won. As the debate touched on Dodd-Frank, it’s time to ask again what Romney would do… Read More >>
Swapping Out of the Future
As the price tag gets bigger for executed and cleared over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives trading, many firms are thinking about sidestepping the swaps markets to come and putting more effort into futures markets. This scenario is emerging as firms review their strategies for post-Dodd Frank OTC markets and find too many complications such as a severe… Read More >>
SIFMA Moment: Ari Fleischer on Romney & Regulations
If Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney wins the White House, his administration may take “a market-based approach” toward the regulations to come via the Dodd-Frank Act, says Ari Fleischer, ex-White House press secretary and political analyst for CNN. Yet Fleischer never mentioned in his analysis yesterday at the SIFMA Tech Leaders Forum and Expo the… Read More >>
Your Financial IT Spend in 2012
Taken together, two key surveys provide a snapshot of how you and your fellow market participants are allocating your financial technology dollars in 2012. Not surprisingly, the regulatory overhaul of over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives trading is the single biggest budget driver. It’s also no shock that the buy side is still dragging its feet on the… Read More >>
